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FBI Investigating Reported Assault of Female U.S. Service Member By Afghan Evacuees

Published September 25, 2021 at 12:21 PM EDT

The U.S. Army Fort Bliss base stands in El Paso, Texas, U.S., on Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019. President Trump, while making his case for building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, has repeatedly claimed that crime rates dropped in El Paso after a barrier along the the border with Juarez was built a decade ago. But many locals including El Paso's Republican mayor challenge that assertion, pointing to crime rates that dropped before construction even began. Photographer: Adria Malcolm/Bloomberg via Getty Images — The FBI's El Paso, Texas, office received a report of an assault of a female service member by male Afghan evacuees at a complex in New Mexico.

The FBI says it's investigating the reported assault of a female service member from the Fort Bliss Army base by male Afghan evacuees.The service member reported that Afghan evacuees staying at the Doña Ana County Range Complex assaulted her, according to local reports. The complex is in New Mexico, about 25 miles north of Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas."We received the referral from Fort Bliss, and our office is investigating the allegation," the El Paso FBI office said in a statement to NPR on Saturday.The name and age of the woman have not been released, and there are no details of the nature of the assault, but the El Paso Times reports that she was assaulted on Sept. 19 by a "small group of male evacuees.""We take the allegation seriously and appropriately referred the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation," Lt. Col. Allie Payne, director of public affairs for Fort Bliss, told TV station KVIA.Fort Bliss officials have not responded to NPR's requests for comment. Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.